The present invention relates to a garnish clip for attaching a curtain shield airbag to a portion of a vehicle body such as a front pillar of a car.
A device for attaching a curtain shield airbag to a front pillar with a garnish is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication [Kokai] No. 2002-211345 (Patent Document 1). A portion of the curtain shield airbag extending towards the front pillar is housed and held by a movable portion of the garnish that forms deployment space. In Patent Document 1, the garnish is secured to the pillar by a nut and a bolt. The curtain shield airbag can be deployed to protect the head of a vehicle occupant if a collision or rollover occurs.
A garnish for attaching a curtain shield airbag to a pillar is also disclosed in Kokai No. 2003-104156 (Patent Document 2). The garnish consists of a face and a bracket. A portion of the bracket is fixed to the face, and another portion detachably engages the face. The bracket has an engagement portion that is mounted in a pillar mounting hole at the position of a detachable connector. The curtain shield airbag is surrounded by the face and the bracket to house and hold the airbag in place. When the curtain shield airbag is deployed, the detachable connector comes off.
A clip is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,695 (Patent Document 3) in which trim such as a garnish is fastened near a pillar so that the garnish does not fly off when it is released from the pillar for rapid deployment of a curtain shield airbag. The clip consists of a first male portion for snapping the clip into a hole in the pillar, a female portion that is snapped into the trim, and a second male portion that extends from the first male portion and is snapped into the female portion and connected to the trim via the female portion. A flexible strap connects the first male portion and the female portion. When the female portion separates from the second male portion, the strap keeps the trim from flying off the pillar.
The attachment structures for curtain shield airbags disclosed in Patent Documents 1-3 keep a garnish from flying off a pillar in the direction of a vehicle occupant when a curtain shield airbag is deployed, and improve the safety of a vehicle occupant, but all have deficiencies. The garnish in Patent Document 1 has to be attached using nuts and bolts. This operation makes an automobile assembly line more complex and is time-consuming because of the complexity of the operation. Also, the attachment portion of the garnish has to have a specific configuration in order to ensure that there is enough space for curtain shield airbag deployment. In Patent Document 2, the garnish is attached using a bracket and a garnish face which have to be secured tightly at multiple points—a complicated operation. The clip in Patent Document 3 snaps into place, but the attachment operation is troublesome, because the strap has to be folded properly.